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Child Support Enforcement

This Division locates absent parents, establishes legal paternity for children born outside marriage, establishes/enforces child support orders, and monitors collection and disbursement of child support payments. Family Assistance recipients are automatically referred by their worker.

HOW TO CONTACT THE CHILD SUPPORT UNIT

Persons who currently have support orders payable through the Oneida County Support Collection Unit and should receive support may call for payment information. You must have a PIN; if you do not you may obtain one from the local office.

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CHILD SUPPORT FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

1. Who can get help in obtaining child support & where do I go?

Any parent or person who has legal custody of a child can get help in locating the child's absent parent, establishing a child's paternity (legal fatherhood), establishing a child support order, modifying the order, obtaining health insurance for a child, collecting current child support, and any past due child support.

People who receive Family Assistance or Medicaid automatically receive child support enforcement services.

People not receiving Family Assistance or Medicaid can receive our services by simply applying for such services, without regard to income.

You may call 315-798-5048 and request an application for services to be mailed to you or stop in and pick one up at the following address:

2. I always get my check the same day, but it's not here. What happened?

You should first contact our payment information line at 1-800-846-0773, available 24 hours/7days a week. It is necessary to have your PIN available. If you do not have one, our local Support Collection Unit can give you one.

If no payment has been reported on our information line, you should then contact your Investigator via fax, mail, or in person. No payment information can be given over the phone from our Local Unit to protect your confidentiality. The Investigator will advise you what action should be taken next.

3. I don't know where my child's absent parent is. Can you help with location?

The Child Support Enforcement program uses computer searches against a large number of New York State, other States and Federal data banks to locate non-custodial parents.

The most critical piece of information you can supply to help find an absent-parent is his/her social security number. If you do not have the social security number, you can check hospital records, bank records, insurance policies, credit card records, paystubs, or income tax returns.

4. I'm not married to my child's father. Can I still get Child Support?

Yes! Once you establish paternity (Legal Fatherhood) for the child. There are many excellent reasons for parents to legally establish the paternity of their child.

A man's name cannot appear on his child's birth certificate unless paternity has been established.

A child is entitled to financial support, including child support, social security benefits, veteran's benefits, military allowances, and inheritance, once paternity has been established.

A child may be entitled to health insurance through his/her father, or mother, once paternity has been established. This will also allow access to medical history records.

5. How do I get a child support order?

A court can establish a child support order based on the filing of a petition requesting to do so. The person chargeable with support must be the child's parent through marriage, adoption, or through the establishment of paternity. Child support orders are generally payable until the child's twenty-first birthday.

6. Can I get health insurance for my child through the Child Support Unit?

New York State law mandates that all orders of child support must require either parent to extend health insurance if available and affordable through an employer, at the time the order is issued or at any time in the future, to cover the child. If the non-custodial parent has health insurance available, but does not enroll the child, the Child Support Unit can help enforce this provision of the court order.

7. My child support order is too low. How can I get it increased?

The Child Support Unit can help you increase the obligation amount of your child support order depending on the situation. Further questions can be answered by the Investigator at the local office.

8. I have a child support order, but the other parent doesn't pay. Can you help me?

Administrative remedies can be used to collect all current and past due child support. Some of the remedies are as follows:

Income Executions - All orders of child support issued in New York State are required to provide for immediate wage withholding.

Income Tax Refund Offset

Lottery Prize Offset

Driving Privilege Suspension

Liens

Referral to the Tax Department

Credit Bureau Reporting

9. Can I get child support when the other parent lives in another state?

All states are required to pursue all child support enforcement programs for out-of-state cases in the same way they do for in-state cases. All states must cooperate with each other in these matters.